Assembly apparatus



Feb. 6, 1968 N. J. MANDONAS ETAL. 3,367,013

ASSEMBLY APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 27, 1965 Feb. 6, 1968 N. J. MANDONAS ETAL 3,36 3

ASSEMBLY APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 27, 1965 Feb. 6, 1968 N. J. MANDONAS ETAL 3,367,013

A5 SEZMBLY APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Sept. 27, 1965 Feb. 6, 1968 N. J. MANDONAS ETAL 3,367,013

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Feb. 6, 1968 N. J. MANDONAS ETAL 3,367,013

ASSEMBLY APPARATUS Filed Sept. 27, 1965 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 jig- 7 3,367,013 Patented Feb. 6, 1968 ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLUSURE Apparatus for assembling parts of a coaxial connector, wherein an insulating disc is mounted in a prescribed longitudinal position on an elongated contact after which the subassembly so formed is inserted within a hollow cylindrical body with the contact oriented to a predetermined rotary position with respect to the hollow body.

This invention relates to an assembly apparatus, and more particularly to an assembly apparatus for locating an insulating disc at a predetermined position on a center contact and securing the disc-contact subassembly in a desired orientation within a hollow cylindrical body of a coaxial cable connector.

This application is copending with N. J. Mandonas et al. application Ser. No. 490,514, filed Sept. 27, 1965, N. I. Mandonas application Ser. No. 490,618, filed Sept. 27, 1965, and W. T. Nowell application Ser. No. 490,558, filed Sept. 27, 1965, all filed concurrently with and assigned to the same assignee as this application.

In the manufacture of coaxial cable connectors as practiced before this invention, the various parts com prising the connectors were assembled together and tested manually. Since these parts must be accurately positioned with respect to one another, the manual assembly, positioning, and testing thereof is tedious and time consuming. Consequently, a need arose for automatic facilities for assembling the parts of coaxial cable connectors accurately, quickly, and economically.

An object of this invention is to provide a new and improved assembly apparatus.

Another object is to provide an assembly apparatus for locating an insulating disc at a predetermined position on a center contact and securing the disc-contact subassembly in a desired orientation within a hollow cylindrical body of a coaxial cable connector. A related object is such an assembly apparatus for automatically securing a disc-contact subassembly within the body of a coaxial cable connector accurately, quickly, and economically.

With these and other objects in view, the invention contemplates an automatic assembly apparatus for locating an insulating disc at a predetermined longitudinal position on an elongated center contact. The disc-contact subassembly is oriented such that a slot formed in the contact faces toward an opening in a hollow cylindrical body of a coaxial cable connector when the disc-contact subassembly is subsequently inserted into and secured within the body.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent by reference to the following detailed specification and accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of an apparatus for locating an insulating disc at a predetermined position on a center contact;

FIG. 2 is a schematic timing diagram showing the sequence of movements involved in locating the disc on the contact,

FIG. 3 is a detailed View of an ejection mechanism of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1 for ejecting disc-contact subassemblies therefrom;

FIG. 3A is a side view of the ejection mechanism depicted in FIG. 3 showing its two positions of operation;

FIGS. 4A-4G are a series of views showing the operations performed by the apparatus shown in FIG, 1 in locating the disc on the contact;

FIG. 5 is an isometric view of an apparatus for orienting the disc-c0ntact subassembly to a desired position and inserting the disc-contact subassembly into the body of a coaxial cable connector;

FIG. 6 is a view showing the disc-contact subassembly being inserted into the body;

FIG. 7 is a View of an apparatus for securing the disccontact subassembly within the'body of a coaxial cable connector;

FIG. 8 is a detailed partial view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 7 in an operated condition;

FIG. 9 is a schematic block diagram showing the relative location of the apparatus depicted in FIGS. 1, 5, and 7, with respect to each other, and

FIG. 10 is a side view of a completely assembled coaxial cable connector.

General description Referring first to FIG. 10, there is shown a coaxial cable connector 30 which comprises a hollow cylindrical body 31 having a pair of oppositely disposed windows 32 formed through the walls of the body. A hollow terminal cap 36 is fitted into the top of body 31. A ring 39 of solder is formed around cap 36 to secure the cap to body 31. A center contact 41 is mounted between an upper insulating disc 42 and a lower insulating disc 43 within body 31. Contact 41 has a slot 44 formed therein which is oriented to face out of one of the windows 32. Slot 44 is oriented in this manner to facilitate the soldering of an electrical lead (not shown) thereto.

The apparatus shown in FIG. 1 assembles lower disc 43 at a predetermined location on contact 41 to form a disc-contact subassembly 73 (FIG. 2). Disc-contact subassembly 73 is then fed to the apparatus shown in FIG. 5, whereat slot 44 of contact 41 is rotated to a desired orientation. Thereafter, disc-contact subassembly 73 is fed to the apparatus shown in FIG. 7, whereat disccontact subassembly 73 is staked within body 31. The apparatus shown in FIG. 1 may be used as substation VIIIA of an apparatus for assembling coaxial cable connectors disclosed in application Ser. No. 490,514, that in FIG, 5 as substation VIIIB, and that in FIG. 7 as substation VIIIC of the Mandonas et al. application.

Referring to FIG. 9, there is schematically shown the relative location of the apparatus of FIGS. 1, 5, and 7 With respect to each other. Body 31 is supported in a fixture 51 (FIGS. 5 and 7) which is mounted on a carrier s7, such as an indexing chain or conveyor. An air valve 92 has a control arm 91 and is mounted near carrier 67 to detect whether a body 31 is in fixture 51, thereby controlling the operation of the apparatus shown in FIG. 5.

Assemble disc on contact With reference to FIG. 1: the apparatus for locating lower disc 43 at a predetermined location on center contact 41 to form disc-contact subassembly 73 (FIG. 2) comprises first and second barrels 101 and 102 mounted for rotation about cams 103 and 104, respectively, which are fixed to housing 109. Barrel 101 has a lot 105 formed on the outer periphery thereof which accommodates disc 43. Cams 103 and 104 have peripheral grooves 106 and 107, respectively, formed therein, the path of grooves 106 and 107 being best seen in FIG. 2.

A drive shaft 108 has a pulley 111 attached thereto which is connected by a chain 112 to a motor (not shown). Shaft 108 is connected to drive barrels 101 and 102 about cams 103 and 104, respectively. Cam followers 115 and 116 are connected to slide mechanisms 117 and 119 respectively, and extend into grooves 106 and .107, respectively. Slide 117 has a pin 120 mounted on the end thereof and is movable laterally (as seen in FIG. 1) within a groove 118 formed in barrel 101. Slide 119 is movable laterally within a groove 121 formed in barrel 102. Slide 119 has a slot 125 which accommodates contact 41.

In FIGS. 1 and 4A, a first track 122 has a supply of contacts 41 therein and a second track 123 has a supply of disc 43 therein. Contacts 41 are gravity fed from tracks 122 to a mechanism 128 (FIG. 4A) for releasing them to slot 125 in barrel 102. Discs 43 are gravity fed from track 123 to slot 105 in barrel 101. Contacts 41 and discs 43 may be fed to tracks 122 and 123, respectively, by conventional vibratory feeding devices.

Referring to FIG. 4A, barrel 102 has a pair of spaced, parallel friction treads 124 (as best seen in FIG. 1) secured on the surface thereof along approximately onequarter of its circumference. A cam surface 126 is mounted on barrel 102 between treads 124. An arm, 127 of release mechanism 128 has a cam follower 131 on one end and is pivotable about a pin 129. An arm 136, having a stepped L-shaped end 137, is secured to arm 127 and is also pivotable about point 129. A spring 139 is connected to maintain tension on arm 127. A finger 138 is pivotably mounted to housing 109 and is secured to a plate 141. Plate 141 is movable by a pin 142 mounted on arm 127 when arm 127 is pivoted about pin 129. A trough 140 is formed in barrel 102 to clear contact 41 until it is picked up by friction treads 124.

An arm 146 (FIG. 1) comprised of conducting material is secured to housing 109. Arm 146 is electrically connected to ground potential and is insulated from hous-,

ing 109. A solenoid 147 is mounted on housing 109 and has an armature 148 connected to a linkage 149. Linkage 149 is connected to a plate 151 (FIGS. 1 and 4A), which is pivotably mounted on housing 109 and is urged towards housing 109 by a spring 153. Housing 109 is curved at 156 corresponding to the surface of barrel 102, but spaced a short distance away from barrel 102 to permit the ends of contacts 41 to roll in the passageway formed by housing 109 and barrel 102.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4A, an eject mechanism 157 is located between and beneath barrels 101 and 102 at the terminus of arrow 161 (FIG. 1). Eject mechanism 157 comprises a gate 158 which is pivotable about a pin 159. Gate 158 forms part of one wall of a chute 163 (FIG. 1) when it is in the solid line position shown. Gate 158 is movable to and from the solid and dotted line positions by a solenoid 162. Photoelectric devices 166 and 167 (FIG. 1) are mounted on housing 109 opposite light sources 168 and 169, respectively such that the beams from the light sources just pass over the top of chute 163 (FIG. 1). Photoelectric devices 166 and 167 are connected to a circuit (not shown) which controls the energization of solenoid 162, and therefore the movement of gate 158.

Operation Referring to FIGS. 1 and 4A, arm 127 of a release mechanism 128 is raised by cam 126 as barrel 102 is rotated clockwise to release one contact 41 onto the lower step of the L-shaped portion 137 of arm'136. At this time, trough 140 in barrel 102 is located under end 137 of arm 136. As barrel 102 is rotated further, treads 124 pick up contact 41 (FIG. 4B) and roll it through the passageway between surface 156 and barrel 102 towards plate 151 (see FIG. 4C). Simultaneously with this action, a disc 43 falls into slot 105 in barrel 101 and begins to catch up to contact 41 which has stopped at plate 151 (FIG. 4D). Upon further rotation of barrels 101 and 102, disc 43 catches up to and comes into alignment with contact 41, at which time contact 41 falls into slot 125 in slide 119 (FIG. 1). The insertion of contact 41 into 4 disc 43 takes place during the arcuate path defined by points 171 and 172 (FIG. 4F).

Referring to FIG. 2, contact 41 is shown aligned with the disc 43 at point 171. As barrels 101 and 102 are rotated past point 171 through arcuate path 171-172, slide 117 in path 106 moves toward a hole 173 (FIG. 1) leading into slot of barrel 101. As barrels 101 and 102 continue to be rotated, pin on slide 117 moves through hole 173 and into the opening in disc 43. Simultaneously, the tip of contact 41 is moved by slide 119 in path 107 to enter the opening in disc 43 from the other end. Upon further rotation of barrels 101 and 102,.slide 117 retracts pin 120 from disc 43 at the same time that slide 119 moves contact 41 further into disc 43. Contact 41 is moved into disc 43 until it is located at a predetermined position on contact 41 to form disc-contact subassembly 73. Barrels 101 and 102 continue to be rotated until slides 117 and 119 are fully retracted at point 172. Shortly after barrels 101 and 102 are rotated past point 172, disc-contact subassembly 73 is dropped into chute 163 (FIGS. 1 and 4F).

In FIG. 1, if there are not enough dis-contact subassemblies 73 to fill up chute 163 above photoelectric device 166, the beam from light source 168 impinges upon and thereby energizes photoelectric device 166. The energization of photoelectric device 166 completes a circuit (not shown) to energize solenoid 161 to move gate 158 to the solid line position (FIGS. 3A and 4A), thereby causing additional disc-contact assemblies 73 to fall into chute 163 as they are assembled.

When disc-contact subassemblies 73 fill up chute 163, such that the beam from light source 169 is intercepted by a disc 43, the circuit is completedto energize photoelectric device 167, thereby deeenergizing solenoid 161. Deenergization of solenoid 161 causes gate 158 to move to the dotted line position to divert additional disc-contact subassemblies 73 .to a collection bin.

Referring to FIG. 4A, if a contact 41 is bent, the bent end contacts conductive arm 146 to complete a circuit (not shown) to energize solenoid 147. Energization of solenoid 147 pivots bracket 151 to the position shown in FIG. 4G, thereby causing bent contact 41 to fall out of slot when barrel 102 is rotated further. Simultaneous ly with the energization of solenoid 147, a solenoid 181 (FIG. 1) is energized to insert a fiat bar 182 through slot 183 in track 123 to prevent a disc 43 from entering slot 105 in barrel 101. Upon a full rotation of barrels 101 and 102, a switch button 186 on a switch 187 is actuated by a cam 188 mounted on shaft 108 to complete a circuit (not shown) to reset solenoids 181 and 147 for the next cycle of operation.

Orient disc-contact subassembly Referring to FIG. 5, there is shown the apparatus for orienting slot 44 of disc-contact subassembly 73 such that it faces out of one of the windows 32 when it is inserted into body 31 of a coaxial cable connector 30 (FIGJ 10).

The apparatus includes a frame 201 on which is mounted a housing 202 connected to chute 163 of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1. Housing 202 has a slot 203 formed therein, which is aligned with the parallel walls of chute 163. A transfer mechanism 204 includes an air cylinder 206 having a piston 207 with a ram 208 mounted on the end thereof. Ram 208 is slidable in a groove 209 formed in housing 202. A switch 210 is mounted on housing 202 and has a resilient switch arm 210 extending across slot 209.

A bracket 211 is mounted on frame 201 and has a shaft 212 extending therethrough. Two sets of linkages 213 and 214 are mounted on main shaft 212 and support a pair of rods 221 and 222. Each rod, 221 and 222, has mounted on its lowermost end a pinion gear 223 and 224, respectively, and on its upper end an orienting blade 227 and 228, respectively.

Pinion gears 223 and 22 mesh with a sector gear 229 which is connected to a transverse member 231 through a collar 233. Member 231 has a pin 232 extending from the end thereof which rests in a slot 234 of a lever 236. Lever 236 is pivotably mounted about a pin 237 and has a cam follower 238 mounted on its lower end which follows the contour of a cam 239.

A pair of vertical channel members 241 and 242 are mounted on frame 201 and have grooves formed therein for receiving slides 243 and 244. Slide 243 has mounted thereon a block 246 connected to an arm 247 which is connected to a cam follower 243. A spring 249 is connected to cam follower 248 and pulls arm 247 downward while urging follower 248 to follow the contour of a cam 251, thereby urging slide 243 to its lowermost position as shown.

Slide 244 has mounted thereon a block 258 which is connected to an arm 259 connected to a cam follower 261. A spring 263 is connected to cam follower 261 and pulls arm 259 downward while urging follower 261 to follow the contour of a cam 264, thereby urging slide 244 to its lowermost position as shown.

A tube 271 is mounted in a vertical position on block 246. A rod 272 is mounted in a vertical position on block 258 and extends upward into tube 271. Tube 271 has an opening 273 formed in the top thereof through which a disc-contact subassembly 73 maybe inserted. As best seen in FIG. 6, rod 272 has a slot 276 formed vertically therein into which the bottom portion of a contact 41 of a disccontact subassembly 73 may be inserted.

Operation Disc-contact subassemblies 73 are gravity fed from the apparatus shown in FIG. 1 down chute 163 through slot 203 into slot 209 in housing 202. When fixture 51 is advanced by carrier 67, body 31 contained therein trips control arm 91 of air valve 92 (FIG. 9), thereby permitting air from an air source (not shown) to actuate air cylinder 206. Air cylinder 2116 drives ram 208 to push a disccontact subassembly 73 through the opening 273 in tube 271 and slot 276 in rod 272.

In being pushed through slot 209, disc-contact subassembly 73 trips switch arm 210 of switch 210, thereby completing a circuit (not shown) to condition the apparatus shown in FIG. 7 for operation, to be described infra.

As cam 239 is rotated, arm 236 is rotated clockwise about pin 239. This action turns member 231 to rotate sector gear 229. The rotation of section gear 229 drives pinion gears 223 and 224 to rotate rods 221 and 222, respectively, thereby rotating blades 227 and 228 clockwise (as viewed from the top of the apparatus) about rods 221 and 222, respectively.

When blades 227 and 228 are rotated, the tip of one of the blades enters slot 44 of contact 41 and turns disccontact subassembly 73 until slot 44 faces a desired direction. This occurs when the tips of blades 227 and 228 are opposite one another. Further rotation of cam 239 causes arm 236 to be rotated counterclockwise to move blades 227 and 228 back to their original position.

Subsequently, as cams 251 and 264 are rotated, slides 243 and 244 are raised in unison, thereby raising tube 271 and rod 272 until tube 271 engages the bottom of body 31 secured in fixture 51 (FIG. 6). Tube 271 continues to be raised to move body 31 upwardly until tube 271 reaches its uppermost position. Slide 244 continues to be raised to move rod 272 upwardly within tube 271, thereby advancing disc-contact subassembly 73 into body 31.

Disc-contact subassembly 73 is then staked within body 31 by the apparatus shown in FIG. 7. After the staking of disc-contact subassembly 73, sector gear 229 and slides 243 and 244 are returned to their original position. The body 31 in the next fixture 51 then trips control arm 91 of air valve 92 (FIG. 9) to start another cycle of operation.

If there had not been a body 31 held in fixture 51 6 when it was advanced to a work position vertically aligned with tube 271, this condition would have been detected by control arm 91 of air valve 92 (FIG. 9). Thus, if no body 31 is held in fixture 51, valve 92 does not actuate air cylinder 2116; consequently no disc-contact subassembly 73 is advanced into tube 271.

Insert disc-contact into body Referring to FIG. 7, there is shown an apparatus for staking disc-contact subassembly 73 within body 31. The apparatus includes a frame 3111 having a slide mechanism 302 on which a housing 303 is slidably mounted. A lever arm 304 has a slot formed in one end in which a pin 306, mounted on housing 303, is received. Lever arm 304 is connected to a push rod 307 by an arm 3138. Push rod 3117 has a cam follower 309 mounted on its lower end which is urged to follow the contour of a cam 311 by a spring 314.

A plate 312 has a pair of arms 316 and 317 depending therefrom, and is slidably mounted within housing 303 on pins 313. Pins 313 also support an inner block 321 within housing 301. Each arm 316 and 317 of plate 312 has formed on its lower end a slanted cam surface 322 which coacts with a cam 323 for moving a spring-biased staking pin 324. Plate 312 is biased upwardly by a spring 326. Spring 326 surrounds a cylinder 327 having an opening therein in which is mounted a spring-biased plate 328 having an opening therein for receiving terminal cap 36 of body 31. A solenoid 331 is mounted on housing 303 and has an armature having a hammer 332 mounted on the end thereof.

A switch arm 343 of a switch 344 is mounted on frame 331 and is operated by a collar 346 mounted on a rod 347 attached to housing 303. Switch 344 is part of a circuit (not shown) for energizing solenoid 331.

Operation In the operation of the apparatus of the invention, fixture 51 advances body 31 with a terminal cap 36 secured to the top thereof to the work position of the apparatus shown in FIG. 7; that is, body 31 is vertically aligned with tube 271 (FIGS. 5 and 6) and the opening in late 328. Fixture 51 and body 31 may be advanced by carrier 67 (FIGS. 5 and 9) to the work position from station VII of an apparatus for assembling coaxial cable connectors disclosed in the above referenced application Ser. No. 490,514.

Assuming that fixture 51 has been advanced with a body 31 held therein to the work position, and that rod 272 and guide tube 271 have moved disc-contact subassembly 73 into body 31, thereby actuating switch 210 (FIG. 5), the apparatus shown in FIG. 7 is permitted to operate through a full cycle.

Cam 311 is rotated to move rod 307 upward, thereby pivoting lever arm 304 to move housing 330 downward, so that connector body 31 enters the opening in block 321 and terminal cap 36 enters the opening in plate 328. At the end of this downward movement, collar 346 actuates switch arm 343 of switch 344 to complete the circuit for energizing solenoid 331. Switch 344 only completes the solenoid 331 energizing circuit when switch 210 (FIG. 5) has been actuated by a subassembly 73.

The energization of solenoid 331 drives hammer 332 to strike plate 312 downward against spring 326. The downward movement of plate 312 moves its arms 316 and 317 downward, such that cam surfaces 322 drive staking pins 324 inwardly (FIG. 8) to dent body 31 about disc 43 of disc-contact subassembly 73. It will be apparent that as many staking pins 324 as are necessary can be provided.

Spring 326 then returns plate 312 to its initial position and spring 314 urges rod 307 to return housing 303 to its original position. After this operation, fixture 51 and connector 30 are advanced by carrier 67 to another work station.

It is to be understood that the above-described embodiment is only illustrative of the principles of the invention, and other embodiments may be devised without departing from the scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In an apparatus for mounting subassemblies each comprised of an insulating disc mounted on anelongated contact within hollow cylindrical bodies:

means including a pair of axially aligned rotary devices for feeding respectively individual discs and individual elongated contacts into mutual axial alignment,

a single slide means mounted on each rotary device for moving respectively a disc and a contact relatively towards each other in the axial direction after such alignment while the members are rotating to mount the disc at a predetermined longitudinal position on the contact to form a subassembly,

a work station,

conveying means for feeding elongated hollow cylindrical bodies one by one to the work station,

means including a magazine and transfer means for feeding the subassemblies one by one to the work station in mutual axial alignment with a body fed to the work station,

means at the work station for rotating each subassembly about its axis to provide a predetermined orientation thereof with respect to a body,

slide means for thereafter moving a subassembly and a body relative to each other in the axial direction to insert the subassembly a predetermined distance within the body with the insulating disc in contact with the internal wall of the body, and

drive means for operating each moving and feeding means and the rotating means in a prescribed sequence.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the rotary devices comprise barrels,

one single slide means comprises,

a slot, formed on oneof the ends of the barrel, for

receiving a disc,

a longitudinal groove formed in the surface of the barrel parallel to its axis,

a first slide mechanism, having a locating pin mounted on one end thereof aligned with the opening in the disc, and mounted in the groove for reciprocal movement therein,

the other single slide means comprises,

a groove formed in the surface of the barrel parallel to its axis,

a second slide mechanism, having a slot formed on its surface, and mounted in the groove for reciprocal movement therein,

a shaft for mounting the barrels on a common axis such that the slot and groove of the first barrel are aligned with and are adjacent to the groove of the second barrel,

means for feeding a disc into the slot of the first barrel and a contact into the slot of the second slide mechanism, and

means for driving the shaft to rotate the barrels, such that the first slide mechanism advances its locating pin into the opening in the disc simultaneously as the second slide mechanism advances the end of the contact into the opening in the disc, and such that the locating pin is withdrawn from the disc simultaneously as the second slide mechanism advances the contact until the disc is located at its predetermined longitudinal position on the contact and the second slide mechanism is returned ,to its original position.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1 comprising;

means effective on operation of the subassembly slide means for securing the subassembly at the predetermined distance within the body.

4. The apparatus according to claim 3 wherein the securing means comprises:

a housing,

a solenoid mounted on the housing and having its armature projecting into a cavity within the housing,

a plate, slidably mounted within the cavity of the housing, and having arms depending from the top thereof, the arms having cam surfaces at their extremities,

a block mounted within the housing, such that the arms of the plate surround and slide over the block, the block having an opening therein for receiving a body,

a spring mounted between the top of the plate and the block for urging the plate and block away from each other,

a plurality of spring-biased staking pins mounted to project laterally through the walls of the block into the opening therein, the number of pins corresponding to the number of arms of the plate, each pin having a cam mounted on one end thereof aligned with the cam surface of its corresponding arm,

means for moving the housing downwardly such that the body enters the opening in the block and the staking pins become aligned with the disc of the subassembly within the body, and

means responsive to the downward movement of the housing for energizing the solenoid to drive its armature to strike the plate, thereby moving the plate downwardly such that the cam surfaces on the arms drive the staking pins to form dents in the body which secure the body to the disc.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the contact has a notch formed therein and wherein the subassembly slide means comprises a feeding and raising means including:

a housing having a slot therein for receiving a subassembly,

a feeding mechanism having a ram mounted for movement within the slot in the housing,

a tube located adjacent the slot and having an opening in the top therein which communicates with the slot in the housing,

a rod concentrically mounted within the tube for movement therein,

means for advancing a subassembly into the slot,

means for actuating the feeding mechanism to move the subassembly in the slot through the opening in the tube, and

means for moving the tube and rod to raise the oriented subassembly to the preselected height within the body, the notch facing out of one of the windows in the body.

6. The apparatus according to claim 5 wherein:

the rotatable orienting means comprises means for turning the notch in the contact of the subassembly to a prescribed orientation.

7. T he apparatus according to, claim 6 wherein the rotatable orienting means comprises:

a pair of parallel rods,

a flat orienting blade mounted on top of each rod, and

means for rotating the rods such that the tip of one of the blades enters the notch in the contact and turns the subassembly within the tube until the tips of the blades are opposite one another.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,698,478 1/1955 Heisterkamp et al. 29-208 3,015,155 1/1962 Dobson et a1. 29-211 3,136,042 6/1964 Horn et al. 29-203 3,276,580 10/1966 Horn et al. 29-85 3,300,846 1/1967 Jones 29--208 THOMAS H. EAGER, Primary Examiner. 

